Membership
The committee is not currently meeting.

Meetings
The committee is not currently meeting.

2003-2004 Goals

• Develop a primer and resource pool for colleges to use with reference to accreditation. This goal will be completed in time for the Spring Plenary. The committee is busily collecting data and statements from researchers and participants in the accreditation process, among others (2.08 F02, 2.14 F02).
  
  Committee members are to collect materials for consideration at future meetings (links, papers, bibliographies, resources) for placement on the Research Committee link to the ASCCC.
  
  
• Urge community colleges to refrain from offering speech communication classes of three or more semester units in time segments of fewer than six weeks, except with the consent of the local speech communication faculty and academic senate.
  (9.05R S02) **
  
  This goal is being blended with the larger and more general consideration of abbreviated courses, alternative delivery time frames (9.06R S02 Quality of Instruction) and a need for specific research with reference to abbreviated course formats, rigor, attrition, and grade distribution.
  
  
• Urge community colleges to refrain from offering any courses of three or more semester units in any alternative delivery time frames other than full-term except with the consent of the tenured discipline faculty and the curriculum committee. (9.06R S02) **
  
  The Committee is discussing the need to gather information regarding local practice, including the prevalence of abbreviated courses, time frames, subject areas, retention rates, and concerns for rigor prior to crafting a statement for consideration by Exec. This work is ongoing and of a high priority.
  
  ** The two above-listed goals may be combined, pending availability of research,
  and result in the creation of a paper regarding non-traditional modes of
  instruction.
  
  
• Develop a paper on the outcomes/assessment movement. Research Committee will collaborate with Ed Policies Committee and President. Emphasize that current use and nature of data is often not effective and its effect on educational policy is often counterproductive (2.08 F02)
  
  Research is being collected, sorted, and prepared to place on the Committee's ASCCC website link as a resource.
  
  
• Work with Basic Skills Committee on a survey of assessment and placement. This follows on recommendations 2.c, 2.d, and 2.g in the paper, "A Survey of Effective Practices in Basic Skills," adopted Spring 2003.
  
  It is possible that this information may exist at the Chancellor's office, but we may require someone to extrapolate and summarize the information. The possibility of a grant is being considered. Jerry Rudmann has sent an email to Harriet Robles to put the committee's discussion of research about basic skills assessment on the RP Board agenda. That group will be meeting at Irvine Valley on October 17th
  
  
• Boards and Hiring. Work with collective bargaining and other organization colleagues to seek legislation and/or regulation changes requiring that, when a local governing board fails to hire a faculty member recommended by the screening committee and CEO, the Board give to the hiring committee reasons for not hiring there commended individual (1.07R S99).
  
  This goal is based on a four- year old resolution. The intention of this resolution was communicated to our CoFO partners for their suggestions and advice; thus, the Research Committee will write a letter for the ASCCC officers to carry to CoFO.
  
  

Goals not carried over:

• Degree Audit Check. Urge local academic senates to support the adoption at their colleges of an automatic degree audit check when a student completes 45 units, and to support the use of a motivational letter automatically generated through their Management Information Systems (MIS) to students completing 45degree applicable units which includes a list of courses needed to complete their Associate degree. (8.01 RS99).
  Recommend referral to CLFIC for final disposition.
  
  
• FW Grading. Resolved that the Academic Senate postpone forwarding the FW grade proposal to the Board of Governors until the effect of the FW grade on financial aid is clarified, and Resolved that Academic Senate reaffirm its support of open access to California community colleges thus giving students the opportunity for economic and social success (14.01R S00). Completed.
  
  
• High School Courses. Reaffirm the missions of community colleges, as established by the Education Code, and take the position that the missions of the community colleges do not include the development of high school curricula or the employment of high school teachers (1904R S00). Recommend this goal be passed to Curriculum for final disposition.
  
  
• Business Education Statewide Advisory Committee. That the Academic Senate reaffirm its support for the Business Education Statewide Advisory Committee and recognize the Committee's crucial role in the development and support for business and technical educators in their workforce training efforts, and continue funding for the Business Education Statewide Advisory Committee in its partnership efforts with the business community to provide relevant, effective, and accessible business training and educational opportunities for all Californians (21.05 RS00). Completed.
  
  
• Faculty Evaluation of Management. Urge local academic senates to seek implementation of AB1725 in the evaluation of management by including input from all supervised faculty in the periodic evaluations of all academic administrators (17.04 S02).
  
  Completed. A breakout was held and a lengthy article was published in the "Rostrum." An initial survey was conducted, though the response indicated few faculty knew at the time of their statutory or regulatory right to participate in such evaluations.

2003 Fall Goals

1. Encourage local senates to work in cooperation with local bargaining units to create security barriers between collected data and individual instructors, students, and class sections; encourage local senates to employ methodologies that aggregate Student Learning Outcomes data; and stress adherence to the 1974 Federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, as well as statements on academic freedom and privacy adopted by the Academic Senate and the American Association of University Professors (2.01 F03).

2. Recommend that colleges and districts provide adequate institutional support for any faculty-driven process that coordinates, manages, and integrates Student Learning Outcomes (2.02 F03).

3. Work with the Chancellor's Office to study the impact that existing and proposed fees have on access of various groups of students (including under-represented populations, transfer-oriented students, vocational students, returning students, and those seeking improvement in basic skills); report these findings at a future plenary session in the form of a breakout session and/or a position paper (6.01 F03).

4. Research the numbers of necessary programs, types of programs, and reasons why programs have been reduced/discontinued and publish this information; utilize the research findings to provide information to legislators to help promote increased funding to necessary community college programs; and reaffirm position that program review and program discontinuance be separate processes and urge local senates to actively participate in both processes (9.04 F03).

5. Research the feasibility, advantages, and disadvantages of implementing common statewide assessment tests for math, English, reading, and ESL for the purpose of placement and report back to the plenary body at the Spring 2005 Plenary Session (13.01 F03).